From the NHS choices website:
www.nhs.uk/aboutNHSChoices/aboutnhschoices/Aboutus/Pages/Governance.aspx
Governance of the NHS website (www.nhs.uk)
The NHS website (www.nhs.uk) is funded by the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC). The content, data and services on the website are commissioned by NHS England and delivered by NHS Digital.
I wonder how the misogynistic, misleading assertion by NHS Choices pages about gender dysphoria (www.nhs.uk/conditions/gender-dysphoria/treatment/)
- eg that a ‘functioning’ ‘vagina’
that has been formed by surgery actually IS well you know ... a functioning vagina, (asserted purely on account of the surgery then creating a new, passive hole within a biologically male person’s body, that can be penetrated) stands up against their equality and diversity policy?
-Ditto the assertion that they can create a ‘functioning’ ‘penis’ for a transman? Which is not true, either.
-ditto claims about the gnrh analogues (puberty blockers) for kids where risks are hugely understated
So while being disparagingly, reductive in their description of naturally-occurring sexual organs (by equating them to the surgically created ‘versions’) NHS Choices are also arguably discriminating against trans people, by offering them less factual information about the risks and benefits of NHS treatment aimed uniquely at trans people (of all ages) compared to info that they offer to other patient groups about other medical procedures. Thus uniquely compromising the informed consent of the trans patient body. Which would be actually transphobic.
So.. noting that the Department of Health funds the NHS websites: their policy protects the characteristics of both sex and gender reassignment:
www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-of-health/about/equality-and-diversity
NHS England had so much material I couldn’t find one statement on the protected characteristics that they recognise- and I didn’t see a lot about sex based inequality... but others may have more luck with the multiple documents here!:
www.england.nhs.uk/about/equality/
I did spot this:
(Page 7) 1.2 Governance
Ultimate responsibility for the affairs of NHS England including compliance with the public sector Equality Duty and our other legal duties rests with NHS England’s Board. Our Board consists of a Chair and eight non-executive directors and four voting executive directors. A number of non-voting executive directors regularly attend Board meetings. Board members bring a range of complementary skills and experience in areas such as finance, governance, health policy, health inequalities and equalities. Key areas of the Board’s governance responsibilities support effective compliance with the duties to reduce health inequalities and the public sector Equality Duty. NHS England then assigns staff internally to give effect to this agenda and work programme.
www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/NHS-England-SED-Response.pdf
NHS digital say:
Service objectives
Guided by industry best practice, when we communicate with the public and service users, we will seek to deliver clearer, more representative, and more accessible information and guidance.
We will establish a network of staff who will investigate the ways in which we can ensure that our products, policies and behaviours reflect the communities we serve and do not disadvantage or otherwise negatively impact the public and users of our services.
As the trusted national provider of high-quality information and data about health and social care, we will improve our focus on protected characteristics in the information that we collect and share. By doing so, we will improve knowledge about the health of, and care experienced by, those with protected characteristics*.
digital.nhs.uk/about-nhs-digital/corporate-information-and-documents/how-we-support-diversity-and-inclusion
Finally- Also noting that there is an NHS equality and diversity Council who might be interested in this issue- contacts at foot of page:
www.england.nhs.uk/about/equality/equality-hub/edc/